Sao Paulo night life 1950-1960: 1 9 6 0 - Mary Wynne, night-life columnist

23rd January 1960 - Italian comedian Otelo Zeloni & Renata Fronzi (born in Argentina but raised in Brazil) star in 'Sempre atrás delas' (Always after them girls) at Theatro Paramount; Zeloni & Fronzi would later in the decade play husband & wife in the hugely popular TV sitcom 'Familia Trapo' aired by TV Record.

At slightly more down-market Teatro das Bandeiras aka Teatro Aluminio, 'Gerarda... naquela base!' (Gerarda... with very little clothes), a musical revue in which strip-tease was the main fare. Gerarda was actually a fictional character created by comedian Adoniran Barbosa in his highly popular weekly radio show at Radio Record. Adoniran's Charutinho (Little Cigar) was a sort of pimp who lived off his mistress Gerarda.

'Naquela base' is an expression that means 'with very little clothes on'; it may also imply that the person - usually a male - is sexually aroused (horny). As one can see, burlesque theatre's main subject was sex.

23rd January 1960 - US singer Freddy Davies was still singing at Boite Oasis for the 9th month in a row; Paulinho Nogueira played his guitar at Captain's Bar on Avenida Duque de Caxias; Aracy Costa sang at Chicote on Praça Roosevelt (Ellen de Lima would be next); Jorge Veiga sang nightly at Michel on Rua Major Sertório (Alda Perdigão would be next).

7 February 1960 - columnist Mary Wynne says the combo usually known as Vadeco-Odilon, Conjunto Baiuca or Os Brasilias should settle to a real name and suggests they should make a poll to come out with the goods; Ms Wynne also tells who are winning 1959's best of night-club acts so far:

national attraction: Maysa, Leny Eversong, Agostinho dos Santos, Isaura Garcia & Angela Maria.

internacional atraction: Nat King Cole, Domenico Modugno, Sarah Vaughn, Billy Eckstein & Lonnie Sattin.

musical combo: Robledo, Vadeco & Odilon, Allende Hugo, Fred Feld Trio & Breno Sauer.

pianist: Fred Feld, Pedrinho Mattar, Robledo, Moacyr Peixoto & Walter Wanderley.

musician: Paulinho Nogueira, Nicolau, Breno Sauer, Gafieira & Delfi Core.

female singer: Marta Janete, Iris Donath, Marta del Carmen, Claudette Soares & Cecy Amarilis.

male singer: Hugo Santana, Caco Velho, Vadeco, Orlando Ribeiro & Tony de Matos.

21st February 1960 - daily 'O Estado de S.Paulo' columnist Mary Wynne writes about this photo: from left to right: Sabá (double-bass) aka 'Lucia', Plinio, the clownish pianist, Odilon (singer & rhythm man) and Vadeco (clarinet & crooner). The drummer is missing here. This combo has been known as Vadeco & Odilon but not officially... They played at A Baiuca in 1959 and now are moving on to Hotel Jaraguá's Studium as of March 1st, 1960.

20 March 1960 - o primeiro internacionalmente famoso cartaz da nova 'season', The Ink Spots, estreará no dia 22 no Michel. O conjunto norte-americano conserva seu lugar no 'top' dos artistas de discos há mais de 20 anos. Já percorreu o mundo inteiro, e finalmente chega a São Paulo. Acompanhados por piano, violão e contrabaixo; The Ink Spots darão seu 1o. espetáculo as 21:00 horas no Teatro Record no dia 23, e estrearão em 'boites' a 1:30 em noite de gala no Michel.

20 March 1960 - Ms Wynne reports Dick Farney's intention to open a 'piano bar' in São Paulo...

27 March 1960 - Mary Wynne bestows her Sacizinho Awards for the best São Paulo night-club acts of 1959:
national attraction: Leny Eversong (Michel-Oasis)
international attraction: Nat King Cole (Fasano)
musical combo: Vadeco, Odilon, Plinio, Sabá (A Baiuca)
pianist: Fred Feld (Michel)
musician (other than pianist): Paulo Nogueira (Captain's Bar)
female singer: Maria Del Carmen (African Boite)
male singer: Hugo Santana (Chicote)
barman: Jorge Moutafoof (Othon Hotel)
Maitre d'Hotel: Fritz Behr (Zillertal)
chef: Carlo Ferrari (Don Fabrizio).

29 March 1960 - Domingo a cronista que ocupa esta coluna, Mary Wynne, distribuiu mais uma vez os já tradicionais 'sacizinhos' aos melhores da vida noturna de São Paulo. Desta vez, a festa, que tomou maior amplitude foi realizada na Boite African, do Hotel Danubio. Numeroso publico ali compareceu. Cerca das 19:00 horas o mestre de cerimonias, cronista Egas Muniz, começou a chamar os premiados. Um a um compareceram ao palco. Leny Eversong, a melhor atração nacional, apareceu de surpresa, quando seu 'sacizinho' já tinha sido entregue à senhora Carol Sachi Werneck, da diretoria do Oasis. Às pressas, uma nova entrega do 'sacizinho', agora à sua verdadeira dona foi providenciada. Seguiu-se um show extra, em que tomaram parte os artistas premiados, incluindo Booker Pittman, que solicitado, cantou e tocou saxofone.

30 March 1960 - Mary Wynne thanks everyone involved in the Sacizinho Award presentation night at Hotel Danubio's African Boite: columnist Egas Muniz for being the M.C. for the 3rd consecutive year; e sempre ao grande povo paulista que continua demonstrando sua magnifica hospitalidade a esta texana, por si mesma 'Paulista by adoption'.

3rd April 1960 - the cliche photo of those holding their Sacizinhos: from left to right: Carlo Ferrari, Fritz Behr, Jorge Moustafoff, Hugo Santana, Fred Feld, Paulo Nogueira & José Fernandes, sub-gerente do Fasano, que recebeu o trofeu de Nat King Cole, melhor atração internacional.

8 April 1960 - In Rio de Janeiro's Plaza Boite 'Bossas da Velha Cap' with Claudia Moreno & Gasolina...

10 April 1960 - Bossa Nova was all the rage in April 1960; Juca Chaves every night at Cave and João Gilberto finally opened at Michel's after having been postponed twice due to the presentation of foreign acts like the Ink Spots and Yvonne De Carlo.

8 May 1960 - Ms Wynne says Teatro Record will present a Bossa Nova Festival on Thursday, 12 May 1960, at 9:30 with Norma Benguel, Agostinho dos Santos, Juca Chaves, Elza Soares, Jograis de São Paulo etc.

8 May 1960 - pianist Pedrinho Mattar is back from Las Vegas, Nevada where he played piano accompanying Leny Eversong at the Thunderbird Hotel. He's playing at Baiúca again. Ms Wynne reminisces about Mary Gonçalves who used to sing there before she moved to Colombia and the USA.

Gerro & Londner lacht zuzamen osi France.

15 May 1960 - Argentine Yidische act Henri Gerro & Rosita Londner in 'Filhinho de papai' - I wonder how this would be in Yidische... at Teatro Cultura Artistica.

15 May 1960 - guitar-player & singer Tito Madi accompanied by pianist Jose Ribamar who had been closely involved in the career of sadly missed Dolores Duran (died on 24 October 1959). Madi & Ribamar are back at Chicote on Praça Roosevelt; Mary Wynne says that since she has moved into the Danubio Hotel on Avenida Brigadeiro Luiz Antonio she'd been at Zillertal's kids' Sunday lunch.

19 June 1960 - Sammy Davis, Jr. performed at Teatro Record from 20 to 26 June 1960. Note that comedian José Vasconcelos performed his one-man-show 'Eu sou o espetáculo' (I am the show) at Teatro Record after having vacated bigger Teatro Paramount where he had been doing daily shows for 8 months. São Paulo was a place where one could see a different play every day of the week (including Bertold Brecht's 'Mother courage') or go and see the City's Camera Orchestra play Prokoffief, Bach and Mozart.

22nd September 1960 - Teen-ager heart-throb Paul Anka sang daily at Teatro Record for 6 nights in a row. Rua da Consolação would come to a virtual stop every time Paul Anka arrived for his performances due to the crowd of teens that congragated to see him. At Teatro Brasileiro de Comedia (TBC) Dias Gomes's 'O pagador de promessas' was doing brisky business. The play would be made into a movie by Anselmo Duarte and win 1962's Cannes Festival. Leonardo Vilar as Zé do Burro was the only actor from original cast kept in the film. Nathalia Timberg and Cleide Yaconis were replaced by Gloria Menezes and Norma Benguel. Socially engaged theatre was a must with Augusto Boal's 'Revolução na America do Sul' at Teatro de Arena and Jean Paul Sartre's 'A engrenagem' at Teatro Bela Vista. Playwright Nelson Rodrigues had 2 plays on: 'A falecida' at Teatro Leopoldo Froes and 'Boca de ouro' directed by Ziembinski at Teatro Federação. Comedienne Dercy Gonçalves kept filling theatres with whatever she did; this time it was L.R.S. (Liga de Repúdio ao Sexo) at Teatro de Cultura Artística; as the 1960 Presidential election came closer, burlesque Teatro Natal was showing 'Politicos no caldeirão'.